Two of the candidates were previous CP nominees. Current national Constitution Party vice-chairman Randy Stufflebeam was the party’s write-in candidate for governor in 2006, a race in which he received the largest write-in vote total in state history (0.55%). Chad Koppie was the Constitution Party’s nominee for U.S Senate in 2008, receiving 0.24% of the vote, as well as in 1996, receiving 0.41%.

It is not yet known if the CP of Illinois will have ballot access. To do so would require 25,000 signatures. In 2010 the party fell a few hundred votes short of the required amount after the state GOP mounted a challenge against them. The Libertarian Party of Illinois will have at least $65,000 to help in the signature gathering process, but the CP likely won’t have anywhere near that amount of finances to help get on the ballot.

Not even that. In 2008 John Joseph Polachek was on the ballot for President in Illinois as the nominee of the New Party. This despite the fact that he did not list a full slate, the New Party had been defunct for 10 years, and he didn’t turn in a single petition signature. No one challenged, he was on the ballot.

But this is the GOP we’re talking about. It would be challenged. Best of luck to the CP.

I’m not. From the late ’90s & through the ’00s the CP had the resources to do successful petition drives. But after Virgil’s failures & the cultural shift toward social liberalism, it seems to be falling apart and fast.